The Chicago Bears coaching search goes on and barring any last-minute surprises this weekend, Monday will mark two weeks since the team fired Matt Nagy and Ryan Pace. It will also mark the day of the second interview for Indianapolis Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus who is the lone finalist right now for the job.
That’s going to change, as Chicago will conduct more interviews over the next few days but one NFL insider is saying we should be keeping our eyes on another candidate instead.
In ESPN’s latest coaching search piece on Friday, insider Dan Graziano talked about the Bears job and made his prediction on who he thinks gets the job. It’s not Eberflus. It’s not Brian Daboll. Not Brian Flores. It’s not even Byron Leftwich. It’s veteran coach Jim Caldwell:
According to multiple sources, the Raiders and Vikings both reached out to former Colts and Lions coach Jim Caldwell this week to request to interview him, and he declined both requests. This indicates strongly that Caldwell believes he will get one of the other open jobs, and my understanding is that he’s in the mix in both Chicago and Jacksonville and already is reaching out to candidates for his staff.
If I had to bet right now, I’d say Caldwell ends up in Chicago, where former Colts general manager Bill Polian is helping direct the search, though it’s obviously interesting that Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus is scheduled for a second interview there. The Bears were interviewing Bills defensive coordinator and former Vikings coach Leslie Frazier on Friday, and I’m told there’s still support for Frazier in their building. Former Eagles coach Doug Pederson is also someone to watch in Chicago if Caldwell doesn’t turn out to be its guy.
Caldwell had his interview last weekend, emerging as a candidate for the franchise. And as Graziano mentions above, he’s turned down interviews with Minnesota and Las Vegas, instead focusing on Chicago and Jacksonville.
It’s tough to tell right now if Caldwell is the favorite but Graziano is plugged in with the league and there’s no reason not to believe him here.
Make sure to check out our Chicago Bears forum for the latest on this coaching search and the team.
